How will i improve my speed in cycling?

I don't know what your 70 k rides entail but if they're hard miles it should be fine. One thing stands out in your question though - 6 weeks. A lot of the people your ride against have been riding for years. If you just began to train you are just beginning. 6 weeks is a very short time to be in training.

Regarding your training, I assume the race was shorter than 70 k. You may want to do 1 or 2 shorter but very hard training rides a week. Intensity is more important than length of ride. (you need both though)

Good on you for trying so hard, there is no quick answer to getting faster but it can be done! The good news is that once you have that "Zip" it is easier to keep it.

Your best bet is to try and find a good local MTB club and start riding with them. Hopefully they will have a coach or experienced rider to give you guidance and other riders of your level so you can train and improve in company.

It's unlikely that your race was anywhere near 70 Km so there is not much point riding that distance all the time. Ideally you should start in winter with long steady rides to build up stamina and as the racing period approaches you change to shorter and faster rides.

There various methods for improvement (interval training, sprinting, group riding, winter gym training e.t.c.) but the basics are to build a solid base of stamina and then train yourself to get faster and faster.

On top of this your bike handling needs to be constantly practised, this is where a club would also help. They should show you new places to ride and expand your repertoire of things you can ride through/over/under/around in company so if you have a spill someone will be there to make sure you are OK and give you hints.

Don't be put off by your first race, there is a lot to learn and as others have said the opposition probably had more experience - so don't worry about them. Find someone to help you locally and have fun!

Hope that helps

The best advice I can give you is to do more racing. Racing is always the best training. It is difficult to simulate the level of intensity you need to be at during a training ride. You will get better over time. I would also remember that one race is just one race. You may have trained for 6 weeks, but others have been riding continuously for seasons and seasons. They may compete every week or multiple times every week. So don't get to bent out of shape on one race.

The other thing I would suggest is doing some road riding. You will always need the mountain riding to work on your skills, but riding on the road will give a chance to really work on your overall fitness. This will translate directly to mountain biking.

You need to ride on hills man. I been bike riding since i was 6 thats already 10 years and one thing i learned is to get speed you must get your legs stronger. Try doing laps in a area with hills and in the end you will notice a big change.

well chances are, a lot of the people that pasted you during the race are amateur pros or hardcore mountain bikers who have been training for years. but a way to improve your speed is to mix up your training rides. try out different trails that offer different types of terrain. that way you can get a feel for the different types of terrain you might see at a race. also, during your training, keep track of your times. aim to improve your time each time you ride a certain trial. having a bike computer can help a lot to make sure you're keeping your average speed up. finally, find a training partner. having someone who is faster than you or about the same speed as you can really help you push yourself harder during rides. i know when i'm riding alone, i tend to slack off and go slower than when i'm riding with one of my buddies. anyways, keep up the training and good luck on you next race! also, i find that cross-training such as running and road-biking can't hurt either. road biking can help you learn to keep a steady cadence.

Sprnting up hill. Do like wind sprints up a nice steep grade. Repeat indefinately. At least till you can barely ride. Repeat after a day of rest. Alternate that fun with Long long distance edurance work.

I would do alot more road riding to increase your speed and what has really helped me alot on both road and mountain riding is spin class. good luck......also if you can ride with better riders to push you would also help!

There is a way...Adjust the gear...if you are going uphill,change the gear higher...If you are going on a flat hill,just change the gear to the lowest